Defying Evil

Inside every Jew is a fighter.

My grandmother's sister, Mrs. Edith Davidovic, is an exemplary Jewish fighter. A truly remarkable and inspirational woman, my great aunt is a Jewish fighter of the first order. More than anybody else I know, she embodies the timeless eternal faith of the Jewish people that has continued to survive and thrive.

Edith was born in Hungary but moved with her family to France. As a young newlywed at the outset of the Second World War, she and her husband went into hiding and joined a resistance group against the Nazis. Her parents took refuge in a small village south of the Vichy French line. My maternal grandparents were fortunate enough to escape across the French border from Aix-les-Bains into Switzerland where they were interned into Labor Camps.

Eventually Edith and her husband were caught by the French SS Nazi Commander Milice. They were forced onto a train on Passover, 1944, and deported to Auschwitz. In Auschwitz every moment was a battle to survive. Aunt Edith was tragically separated from her husband who perished in the Death Camps. To compound misfortune and tragedy, not long after she arrived in that hell on Earth, she discovered that she was pregnant. What would have normally been a cause for joy and celebration was for her the most horrific prospect imaginable.

Her immediate concern was to conceal from the guards that she was pregnant. To accomplish this, she exchanged some of her food for parts of a Polish skirt to cover her stomach and to conceal the fact that she was carrying a child.

In the infirmary, there were two head nurses. One was a harsh Nazi SS woman, while the other was a kind Polish deportee who had been in Auschwitz for some time. Edith confided to the latter of her predicament. The Polish lady took kindly to her and promised Edith that she would take her under her wing when the other nurse was not there.

At Christmas Eve, Edith went into labor. She was horrified at the prospect of the early morning roll call that were typically at 4:00 am. By that time, she would be in the final stages of hard labor. If she would not be at roll call, she would be shot. Miraculously, because it was Christmas, the guards moved up their roll call to 12:00 am to accommodate their festivities. Edith was there.

"If you let the baby live, they will conduct experimentations upon you and neither you nor the baby will survive. At least save yourself."

The Polish nurse assisted my great aunt to give birth to a 4-kilo baby boy within the confines of the barbed wire walls of the concentration camp. Conscious of the impending fate that awaited her, the nurse warned her that time was short.

Were the Nazis to discover her circumstances, her fate and that of her child would be sealed. Dr. Mengele and his cohorts in Auschwitz would inflict medical and scientific tests of the most despicable and brutal nature on her and her child. The nurse gave Edith an ultimatum: "If you let the baby live, I guarantee that they will conduct experimentations upon you in the most cruel fashion, and neither you nor the baby will survive. At least save yourself."

Tears pored down Edith's eyes.

How could she possibly make such a decision? But the nurse didn't leave her with any choice. "I want you to regain your strength and energy to make sure that you survive this hell." She grabbed the baby, removed him from the room, and quickly administered a lethal injection.

The next morning a SS Nazi appeared at the infirmary and demanded to know what had happened.

The Polish nurse explained, This mother gave birth to a stillborn. Not allowing herself to be interrupted, she said authoritatively, "Look at this woman. She is young and strong and is in very good health. Leave her and let her get straight back to work for the Fatherland.”

A long silence.

A shadow of pity penetrated the heart of the guard. He glanced at Edith and then at the nurse. After a moment that lasted an eternity, he slowly nodded his head.

Edith fought her way and successfully recovered her strength and resolve. The daughter of a Hungarian rabbi and a scion from a respected rabbinic family, she courageously hung onto to her Jewish faith. Without the emunah, faith, implanted into me by my parents, she would recall, I would never have had the stamina or audacity to survive.

She defied the Nazis that sought to dehumanize her and degrade her faith by fighting back -- not through arms and resistance, but through the human spirit.

She could not forget her father's insistence to always pray from a siddur unless there were extenuating circumstances. In Auschwitz, she poured her heart out to God. She prayed for strength and salvation and said all the prayers she remembered from memory. She even managed to get hold of a prayer book on Yom Kippur where she summoned all her resolve and prowess to fast on the holiest day of the year.

Edith heroically bribed a guard to exchange her meager food rations for a bit of wax. At great risk to her life, she constructed two Sabbath lights and before sunset on Friday evening, she kindled them and encouraged her fellow downtrodden inmates to also sacrifice their morsels of food to fuel their faith.

With her noble deeds, Edith made sure that the spark and fire of her Jewish soul would not be snubbed or extinguished by the Nazi monsters.

As the Allies closed forces on the Germans, Edith was made to walk the infamous Death March to Birkenau. She was forced to separate from her sister-in-law who was ordered to walk in the opposite direction. Edith met up with a Parisian girl and they encouraged each other to keep walking and not to stop under any circumstances. Those that stumbled, perished.

As the bombing continued and the German forces were sent into disarray, she and the French girl broke away from the march and fled to an empty house where they slept the night. To her great fortune, the two eluded the Russian forces that were picking up workers to be sent to the infamous Siberian labor camps. Instead, Americans forces discovered them. From there they were taken to the border of Belgium.

Edith's sister-in-law, however, was never heard from again. She was presumably taken by the Russian forces and sent to Siberia.

Edith survived and her fighting strength has not diminished one iota.

Edith survived. She returned to Paris, a ghost of her former self, barely recognizable. She was joyously reunited with her parents who had escaped detection by fleeing to south of Vichy. She went on to remarry a Jewish Romanian refugee after the war and with God's help was able to built up a large family with Torah-observant children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Indeed, her fighting strength has not diminished one iota since then.

The Eternal Jewish Fighter

Every Jew, in a very real sense, is a fighter.

Throughout history, the Jew has -- consciously or unconsciously -- been fighting for his life. The threat of genocide is not a new phenomenon. It has been repeated all too frequently throughout the ages, including 2,500 years ago during the Persian Empire when King Achashverosh reigned and Haman plotted to annihilate Jewry from Ethiopia to India.

The annual celebration of Purim reminds the Jew in the depths of exile of the imperative to fight for his physical life, and for his spiritual Jewish identity as well. It propels him to reaffirm his faithfulness in God who thwarted Haman's evil plans through hidden, yet miraculous, means. Then, as now, the Jewish community had to face a fierce battle to stem the trend of assimilation. Then, as now, they retained their faithfulness to the Torah by viewing it as their responsibility and privilege.

I draw continual inspiration from my great aunt's commitment to Jewish faith in the darkness of Auschwitz. When considering the faithfulness of Edith and many other Jews in the face of such unimaginable adversity, I repeatedly ask myself the following uncomfortable question: How much more is expected of me living in a free society, in an age where there are no inhibitions to my growth in Torah?

We have the most magnificent tradition to fuel our human spirit and Jewish soul. How can we not devote time to find out what is so special about our Torah heritage? By continuing the faith to the next generation, every Jew has a guarantee that he or she will emerge as a victorious fighter.

Visitor Comments: 11

This story is very sad, I wouldn't want to be in her shoes, but she was strong and I respect her for that/

(10)
Anonymous,
April 22, 2003 12:00 AM

REMEMBER

For the sake of our children and all humans we should always refer to those who died "al kidush Hashem" as "murdered" not perished. As this story shows their memory lives on. Hashem yinkom domom.

(9)
Anonymous,
March 16, 2003 12:00 AM

This story is so sad.

Time does indeed heal many things. But the horrific stories, such as this one, still leaves the soul feeling sad. Of course this story brought tears and I cried while reading it. And though it turned out well for Edith in the end.
It still makes a person very sad to think that so many Jewish souls had to endure a terrible sorrow most of us will never be able to relate to.

(8)
Shirley,
March 15, 2003 12:00 AM

Moving

I am always moved by the courage of the jewish people.

(7)
Helena in Sweden,
March 12, 2003 12:00 AM

Thank You for sharing this. It´s very important that the stories about the survivors keeps alive. Bless You!

(6)
Anonymous,
March 10, 2003 12:00 AM

I think this article is incredible and it gives me a lot of strength to go on after extremely difficult times I just went through, but eventually, through fighting with myself, and of course with Hashem at my side, I am B"H a lot better and IM"H plan to continue to fight because if these people who suffered far more than I did, still had Emunah (faith) in G-d, how much moreso should my strength be strengthened. Thank You for this amazing article.

(5)
Miriam Schwab,
March 10, 2003 12:00 AM

Defying Evil by Osher Chaim Levene

A wonderfully inspiring piece with a positive, practical and timely message.

(4)
Eric,
March 10, 2003 12:00 AM

Edith and courage

I applaud her courage in the face of the enemy. Her courage was a result of a strong faith in Hashem. However, what is needed today is a courage of a much different kind. Jews are considered the world's whipping boys and girls again and unless we fight back, (not just with prayers) we will suffer holocaust II. Our enemies are changing our Masada slogan from "Never Again" to "Again, Again". We must put a stop to this. This means we must fight and this means we must get physical and get that way now. We must fight those who fight us and we must prevail, or die.

(3)
Shira Levin,
March 10, 2003 12:00 AM

Every Jew a fighter

How horrible that the Polish nurse took
Edith's new born son killing him. It is
a shame there wasn't another way. A way
to save Edith and her son.

(2)
Dustin Deeks,
March 10, 2003 12:00 AM

A warning from the past

This story displays an incredibly tough woman whom defied the Nazis by surviving. This story is also a stern warning to all. This woman should not have had to go through any of this to begin with. To put it bluntly, if any modern regime with similarities to the Nazi party is allowed to come into existence, more people will face these horrific conditions. As Jews and Human Beings, we should make sure that this never happens again.

(1)
Salvatore Liotta,
March 9, 2003 12:00 AM

Edith's courage, inspiration and the God's help saved her life.

Edith's story moves me. Her situation was piteous, yet by her faith, and strength she was able to survive and in her survival she with God's help was able to built up a large family with Torah-observant children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She did not perish and with her survival she performed tikkun olam by raising Torah-observant children who would in turn raise Torah-observant children. By God's light, and our passion, we can rebuild the world. Edith is a true hero. After her hellish ordeal, I certainly hope that she had a most peaceful and bleesed end of her days.

I just got married and have an important question: Can we eat rice on Passover? My wife grew up eating it, and I did not. Is this just a matter of family tradition?

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

The Torah instructs a Jew not to eat (or even possess) chametz all seven days of Passover (Exodus 13:3). "Chametz" is defined as any of the five grains (wheat, spelt, barley, oats, and rye) that came into contact with water for more than 18 minutes. Chametz is a serious Torah prohibition, and for that reason we take extra protective measures on Passover to prevent any mistakes.

Hence the category of food called "kitniyot" (sometimes referred to generically as "legumes"). This includes rice, corn, soy beans, string beans, peas, lentils, peanuts, mustard, sesame seeds and poppy seeds. Even though kitniyot cannot technically become chametz, Ashkenazi Jews do not eat them on Passover. Why?

Products of kitniyot often appear like chametz products. For example, it can be hard to distinguish between rice flour (kitniyot) and wheat flour (chametz). Also, chametz grains may become inadvertently mixed together with kitniyot. Therefore, to prevent confusion, all kitniyot were prohibited.

In Jewish law, there is one important distinction between chametz and kitniyot. During Passover, it is forbidden to even have chametz in one's possession (hence the custom of "selling chametz"). Whereas it is permitted to own kitniyot during Passover and even to use it - not for eating - but for things like baby powder which contains cornstarch. Similarly, someone who is sick is allowed to take medicine containing kitniyot.

What about derivatives of kitniyot - e.g. corn oil, peanut oil, etc? This is a difference of opinion. Many will use kitniyot-based oils on Passover, while others are strict and only use olive or walnut oil.

Finally, there is one product called "quinoa" (pronounced "ken-wah" or "kin-o-ah") that is permitted on Passover even for Ashkenazim. Although it resembles a grain, it is technically a grass, and was never included in the prohibition against kitniyot. It is prepared like rice and has a very high protein content. (It's excellent in "cholent" stew!) In the United States and elsewhere, mainstream kosher supervision agencies certify it "Kosher for Passover" -- look for the label.

Interestingly, the Sefardi Jewish community does not have a prohibition against kitniyot. This creates the strange situation, for example, where one family could be eating rice on Passover - when their neighbors will not. So am I going to guess here that you are Ashkenazi and your wife is Sefardi. Am I right?

Yahrtzeit of Rabbi Moses ben Nachman (1194-1270), known as Nachmanides, and by the acronym of his name, Ramban. Born in Spain, he was a physician by trade, but was best-known for authoring brilliant commentaries on the Bible, Talmud, and philosophy. In 1263, King James of Spain authorized a disputation (religious debate) between Nachmanides and a Jewish convert to Christianity, Pablo Christiani. Nachmanides reluctantly agreed to take part, only after being assured by the king that he would have full freedom of expression. Nachmanides won the debate, which earned the king's respect and a prize of 300 gold coins. But this incensed the Church: Nachmanides was charged with blasphemy and he was forced to flee Spain. So at age 72, Nachmanides moved to Jerusalem. He was struck by the desolation in the Holy City -- there were so few Jews that he could not even find a minyan to pray. Nachmanides immediately set about rebuilding the Jewish community. The Ramban Synagogue stands today in Jerusalem's Old City, a living testimony to his efforts.

It's easy to be intimidated by mean people. See through their mask. Underneath is an insecure and unhappy person. They are alienated from others because they are alienated from themselves.

Have compassion for them. Not pity, not condemning, not fear, but compassion. Feel for their suffering. Identify with their core humanity. You might be able to influence them for the good. You might not. Either way your compassion frees you from their destructiveness. And if you would like to help them change, compassion gives you a chance to succeed.

It is the nature of a person to be influenced by his fellows and comrades (Rambam, Hil. De'os 6:1).

We can never escape the influence of our environment. Our life-style impacts upon us and, as if by osmosis, penetrates our skin and becomes part of us.

Our environment today is thoroughly computerized. Computer intelligence is no longer a science-fiction fantasy, but an everyday occurrence. Some computers can even carry out complete interviews. The computer asks questions, receives answers, interprets these answers, and uses its newly acquired information to ask new questions.

Still, while computers may be able to think, they cannot feel. The uniqueness of human beings is therefore no longer in their intellect, but in their emotions.

We must be extremely careful not to allow ourselves to become human computers that are devoid of feelings. Our culture is in danger of losing this essential aspect of humanity, remaining only with intellect. Because we communicate so much with unfeeling computers, we are in danger of becoming disconnected from our own feelings and oblivious to the feelings of others.

As we check in at our jobs, and the computer on our desk greets us with, "Good morning, Mr. Smith. Today is Wednesday, and here is the agenda for today," let us remember that this machine may indeed be brilliant, but it cannot laugh or cry. It cannot be happy if we succeed, or sad if we fail.

Today I shall...

try to remain a human being in every way - by keeping in touch with my own feelings and being sensitive to the feelings of others.

With stories and insights,
Rabbi Twerski's new book Twerski on Machzor makes Rosh Hashanah prayers more meaningful. Click here to order...